Library / English Dictionary

BOB

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected forms: bobbed    , bobbing   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A short abrupt inclination (as of the head)

Example:

he gave me a short bob of acknowledgement

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("bob" is a kind of...):

inclination; inclining (the act of inclining; bending forward)

Derivation:

bob (make a curtsy; usually done only by girls and women; as a sign of respect)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A short or shortened tail of certain animals

Synonyms:

bob; bobtail; dock

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Hypernyms ("bob" is a kind of...):

tail (the posterior part of the body of a vertebrate especially when elongated and extending beyond the trunk or main part of the body)

Derivation:

bob (remove or shorten the tail of an animal)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A small float usually made of cork; attached to a fishing line

Synonyms:

bob; bobber; bobfloat; cork

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("bob" is a kind of...):

float (something that floats on the surface of water)

Holonyms ("bob" is a member of...):

fishing gear; fishing rig; fishing tackle; rig; tackle (gear used in fishing)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A hanging weight, especially a metal ball on a string

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("bob" is a kind of...):

weight (an artifact that is heavy)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "bob"):

kite tail (a bob on a kite to provide balance)

plumb; plumb bob; plummet (the metal bob of a plumb line)

sounding lead (a metal bob at the end of a sounding line)

Holonyms ("bob" is a part of...):

pendulum (an apparatus consisting of an object mounted so that it swings freely under the influence of gravity)

Sense 5

Meaning:

A long racing sled (for 2 or more people) with a steering mechanism

Synonyms:

bob; bobsled; bobsleigh

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("bob" is a kind of...):

sled; sledge; sleigh (a vehicle mounted on runners and pulled by horses or dogs; for transportation over snow)

Derivation:

bob (ride a bobsled)

Sense 6

Meaning:

A hair style for women and children; a short haircut all around

Classified under:

Nouns denoting body parts

Hypernyms ("bob" is a kind of...):

coif; coiffure; hair style; hairdo; hairstyle (the arrangement of the hair (especially a woman's hair))

Derivation:

bob (cut hair in the style of a bob)

Sense 7

Meaning:

A former monetary unit in Great Britain

Synonyms:

bob; British shilling; shilling

Classified under:

Nouns denoting quantities and units of measure

Hypernyms ("bob" is a kind of...):

British monetary unit (monetary unit in Great Britain)

Meronyms (parts of "bob"):

cent (a fractional monetary unit of several countries)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Cut hair in the style of a bob

Example:

Bernice bobs her hair these days!

Classified under:

Verbs of grooming, dressing and bodily care

Hypernyms (to "bob" is one way to...):

arrange; coif; coiffe; coiffure; do; dress; set (arrange attractively)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sentence example:

They bob their hair

Derivation:

bob (a hair style for women and children; a short haircut all around)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Make a curtsy; usually done only by girls and women; as a sign of respect

Example:

She curtsied when she shook the Queen's hand

Synonyms:

bob; curtsy

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "bob" is one way to...):

greet; recognise; recognize (express greetings upon meeting someone)

"Bob" entails doing...:

bow; bow down (bend one's knee or body, or lower one's head)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s

Derivation:

bob (a short abrupt inclination (as of the head))

Sense 3

Meaning:

Remove or shorten the tail of an animal

Synonyms:

bob; dock; tail

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "bob" is one way to...):

cut (separate with or as if with an instrument)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

bob (a short or shortened tail of certain animals)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Move up and down repeatedly

Example:

her rucksack bobbed gently on her back

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "bob" is one way to...):

move (move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "bob"):

dabble (bob forward and under so as to feed off the bottom of a body of water)

bob about; bob around (move up and down with no specific path)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s

Derivation:

bobber (a small float usually made of cork; attached to a fishing line)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Ride a bobsled

Example:

The boys bobbed down the hill screaming with pleasure

Synonyms:

bob; bobsled

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "bob" is one way to...):

sled; sleigh (ride (on) a sled)

Domain category:

athletics; sport (an active diversion requiring physical exertion and competition)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP

Derivation:

bob (a long racing sled (for 2 or more people) with a steering mechanism)

Credits

 Context examples: 

He sprang up and threw his arms round Alleyne's neck, while John, no less pleased, but more backward and Saxon in his habits, stood grinning and bobbing by the wayside, with his newly won steel cap stuck wrong side foremost upon his tangle of red hair.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

So he turned upon his heel, and a minute later from the deck I could see his short, squat figure bobbing about in the distance as he made his way back to his train.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Boys go nutting, and I don't care to be bagged by them, returned Jo, pasting away at the kite which no wind that blows would ever carry up, for Daisy had tied herself on as a bob.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

It was not a trifling business to get the great umbrella up, and properly balanced in her grasp; but at last I successfully accomplished this, and saw it go bobbing down the street through the rain, without the least appearance of having anybody underneath it, except when a heavier fall than usual from some over-charged water-spout sent it toppling over, on one side, and discovered Miss Mowcher struggling violently to get it right.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

Thomas Mugridge, on the other hand, considered it a laughable affair, and was continually bobbing his head out the galley door to make jocose remarks.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

For an instant something had obscured the light, and now a head was bobbing up and down outside, the face looking in at him, and swinging slowly from one side of the window to the other.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Mornin' now, announced Demi in joyful tone as he entered, with his long nightgown gracefully festooned over his arm and every curl bobbing gayly as he pranced about the table, eyeing the 'cakies' with loving glances.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

On the other throne there was perched bolt upright, with prim demeanor, as though he felt himself to be upon his good behavior, a little, round, pippin faced person, who smiled and bobbed to every one whose eye he chanced to meet.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

She never finds herself very soon, so the minute her cap began to bob like a top-heavy dahlia, I whipped the Vicar of Wakefield out of my pocket, and read away, with one eye on him and one on Aunt.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

The sister, Catherine, was a slender, worldly girl of about thirty with a solid sticky bob of red hair and a complexion powdered milky white.

(The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald)